Hotel booking via RCCL no longer possible?

[Kegsi]

Hi,

I have to ask now to get a precise Answer. My Travel Agency has already tried RCCL in Bremen (Germany), here there are contradictory Statements.
We have booked a TA with the Odyssey otS from Ft.Lauderdale for April 2023.

Flights are booked, everything OK. Now, as always, we wanted to book an overnight stay in Ft.Lauderdale through RCL.
The First Statement in June was that it is not yet possible, something new is coming...

The second statement was last Thursday, you can book from Monday a week ago...

The third statement was on Monday a week ago that this is no longer possible via RCL,

we have to take care of the booking ourselves, whether we use PRICELINE or BOOKING . COM, it doesn't matter...

 

What's right now?? Is it really no longer possible to book Hotels through RCL??

My inquiries via twitter and emails have not been answered, now we are at a loss.

Unfortunately, I don't speak English very well, so I can't call Miami either, that wouldn't help. ❓

[Biker19]

2 hours ago, Kegsi said:

Unfortunately, I don't speak English very well, so I can't call Miami either, that wouldn't help. ❓

This post would suggest otherwise - there are Americans who can’t put a clear post together like you have.
 

 What is available directly via RCI may vary depending on which market you booked the cruise but you should follow the third answer you got - book your own hotel. 

[Kegsi]

15 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

This post would suggest otherwise - there are Americans who can’t put a clear post together like you have.
 

 What is available directly via RCI may vary depending on which market you booked the cruise but you should follow the third answer you got - book your own hotel. 

Google translator helps me here...😉

 

So far we've always booked the hotel and transfers through RCCL, but when it's no longer possible, it becomes a lot more difficult for us and we have to reorient ourselves. Too bad.😕

[Funky Fusion FoodsJ]

43 minutes ago, Kegsi said:

Google translator helps me here...😉

 

So far we've always booked the hotel and transfers through RCCL, but when it's no longer possible, it becomes a lot more difficult for us and we have to reorient ourselves. Too bad.😕

This is a temporary issue.  RCL is working on their hotel affiliations/program and will be coming out with a revised program in the near future.

[Kegsi]

12 minutes ago, Funky Fusion FoodsJ said:

RCL is working on their hotel affiliations/program

Many thanks for the answer!
Unfortunately, there isn't much time left until April to wait. I will now book the hotel myself and hope that everything works out.

[Ourusualbeach]

3 hours ago, Kegsi said:

Hi,

I have to ask now to get a precise Answer. My Travel Agency has already tried RCCL in Bremen (Germany), here there are contradictory Statements.
We have booked a TA with the Odyssey otS from Ft.Lauderdale for April 2023.

Flights are booked, everything OK. Now, as always, we wanted to book an overnight stay in Ft.Lauderdale through RCL.
The First Statement in June was that it is not yet possible, something new is coming...

The second statement was last Thursday, you can book from Monday a week ago...

The third statement was on Monday a week ago that this is no longer possible via RCL,

we have to take care of the booking ourselves, whether we use PRICELINE or BOOKING . COM, it doesn't matter...

 

What's right now?? Is it really no longer possible to book Hotels through RCL??

My inquiries via twitter and emails have not been answered, now we are at a loss.

Unfortunately, I don't speak English very well, so I can't call Miami either, that wouldn't help. ❓

Maybe it has something to do with you not being in North America but Royal has launched their new Hotel program months ago and is available for Travel Agents to use.

[Ourusualbeach]

32 minutes ago, Funky Fusion FoodsJ said:

This is a temporary issue.  RCL is working on their hotel affiliations/program and will be coming out with a revised program in the near future.

It has been available for travel agents for a few months now. 

[FionaMG]

19 minutes ago, Kegsi said:

Many thanks for the answer!
Unfortunately, there isn't much time left until April to wait. I will now book the hotel myself and hope that everything works out.

 

I think it is possible to book through Royal, although perhaps not in Germany? They appear to have partnered with Priceline to offer this service.

On the US website, if you go down to very bottom of the page, in the right-hand column under "Plan a cruise", you will see the option "Book a hotel".

 

If you click on that, it prompts you to log in to your account to be able to book a hotel:

 

After you log into your account, you again have to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page to see the hotel booking link:

And then you get a form to fill in with the details. Then you just start writing the place you're looking for in the box:

 

The thing to remember is that if you do this yourself, you don't get the same consumer protection that you would get if your travel agent does it. If your travel agent does it, it would be considered as part of a package (flights, hotel + cruise) giving you more protection under EU consumer law than if you book it independently.

 

I hope this helps and you're able to sort something out.

[Kegsi]

8 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

I hope this helps and you're able to sort something out.

I have already booked, yes I had to enter the booking number of the trip. Maybe it will be linked. Now only the transfer from Miami Airport to the hotel in Fort Lauderdale is missing. Does anyone have any tips?? Or experiences??

[FionaMG]

23 minutes ago, Kegsi said:

I have already booked, yes I had to enter the booking number of the trip. Maybe it will be linked. Now only the transfer from Miami Airport to the hotel in Fort Lauderdale is missing. Does anyone have any tips?? Or experiences??

Last time we used Lyft. There is free WiFi at Miami that you can use to order the car. It cost about $35 for the ride, I think.

The time before that we used Larrys' Limos, which was a good bit more expensive but meant the driver was waiting for us when we came though baggage reclaim, and obviously a nicer vehicle. https://www.larryslimo.com/

[Kegsi]

5 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

There is free WiFi at Miami that you can use to order the car.

Wouldn't it make more sense to book the trip online in advance? I always find it very difficult to make phone calls (in English)...😕

[FionaMG]

3 minutes ago, Kegsi said:

Wouldn't it make more sense to book the trip online in advance? I always find it very difficult to make phone calls (in English)...😕

 

For Lyft (or Uber), you book the ride in the app when you're ready to go, no phone call needed.

 

For Larry's you would book in advance on their website but you don't have to pay in advance. We paid the driver.

 

I would say the best choice for you is whatever you feel most comfortable with. Even though the limo service costs more, you have the peace of mind of knowing that the driver is there waiting for you. After a long transatlantic flight that is a very nice feeling.

 

[Kegsi]

7 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

After a long transatlantic flight that is a very nice feeling.

Many Thanks!! You have helped me a lot. Obrigado🌍

[FionaMG]

1 minute ago, Kegsi said:

Many Thanks!! You have helped me a lot. Obrigado🌍

 

My pleasure! 😊